Insurable Interest Canadian Insurance Blog

The higher rate of U.S. inflation, heightened market volatility and increased business expenses account for a 40% decline in RIA assets under management, according to Fidelity Investments’ 2023 Benchmarking Survey. Organic growth dropped from 8.2% in 2021 to less than 4% in 2022. “Organic growth is one area where we’ve seen a challenge across the board,” Noni Robinson, head of emerging RIA at Fidelity Institutional, says in an interview with ThinkAdvisor. In the smaller and mid-sized RIA segment, organic growth is a significant issue since these firms typically lack dedicated staff to help them “evolve to the next level,” Robinson notes. But Fidelity, among other firms, is making a concerted effort to help such custody clients by supporting them in such areas as technology integration, operating efficiencies, scaling and portfolio construction. Other areas of RIA concern are cybersecurity and attracting talent. In the interview, Robinson cites a Fidelity white paper that details five areas of focus for drawing talent, like creating “a destination workplace.” Robinson, who joined Fidelity in 2022 after more than 23 years at Vanguard — most recently as head of retirement plan client services of the Institutional Investor Group — explains much of the plan for RIAs that she...

“How about all those hardworking people who grew up and had no opportunity to go to college? I get it,” he said. “That’s why a big part of my economic agenda is invested in all Americans, whether you attend college or not.” Young voters were crucial to Biden’s victory in 2020, when he vowed to cancel student loans as a candidate. In Wisconsin, Biden met with borrowers who have received relief through his previous initiatives, according to White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre. Senior administration officials, who previewed the details, said relief for borrowers with accrued interest could occur as soon as this fall. However, the timeline is unclear for when all potential beneficiaries could see cancellation. Legal Challenges The Higher Education Action — the law the president is using to pursue relief — requires that actions take effect in July of the following year after a final rule is introduced, unless there are special circumstances. The administration has pursued other measures on a fast-tracked basis, including the so-called “SAVE” repayment program. Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach, who led 11 Republican-controlled states to sue the administration over past forgiveness moves, questioned the legality of the current proposal. “If any of these schemes...

Mark Zuckerberg passed Elon Musk on Friday to become the third-richest person in the world, the first time since 2020 the arch-rival billionaires have held those positions. Musk, who ranked first on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index as recently as early March, fell to fourth after Reuters reported Tesla Inc. had canceled plans for a less-expensive car, sending shares lower. (Musk denied the report.) That followed news earlier in the week that Tesla’s vehicle deliveries fell in the three months through March, their first year-over-year decline since the early days of the Covid pandemic. Musk’s wealth has shrunk by $48.4 billion this year, while Zuckerberg has added $58.9 billion to his fortune as Meta Platforms Inc. climbs to fresh highs, including a new record on Friday. It’s the first time Zuckerberg has broken into the top three on Bloomberg’s ranking of the richest people since Nov. 16, 2020, when he was worth $105.6 billion and Musk’s fortune was $102.1 billion. Musk now has a net worth of $180.6 billion; Zuckerberg’s is $186.9 billion. The reversal of the wealth gap between Musk and Zuckerberg, which was as big as $215 billion in November 2021, illustrates how once-hot electric vehicle stocks have been usurped...

What You Need to Know The new regulations would apply to Medicare Part D drug plans as well as Medicare Advantage plans. CMS shows producer initial enrollment comp might increase to $726 in 2025, from $611 this year. CMS backed off from a complete ban on marketer lead sharing but will toughen consumer consent rules. Medicare Advantage program managers have completed final regulations that could lead to an overhaul of pay for agents, brokers and field marketing organizations starting with the annual enrollment period for 2025 coverage. The final regulations call for increasing maximum producer compensation for an initial plan enrollment by $100 — including the cost of the training services, technology services and other support services provided by FMOs in the compensation maximum. If implemented as adopted, the final regulations will also apply to the producers and FMOs selling Medicare Part D prescription drug plans. The rule package would also require one Medicare plan marketing organization to get clear permission from a consumer before sharing the consumer’s information with other plan marketing organizations. At press time Friday, health insurance distributors like eHealth and industry groups like the National Association of Benefits and Insurance Professionals were still digesting the 1,327-package. What...